Three Imaginary Girls: We have the facts and we’re voting…

We finally have a Democratic presidential nominee. It’s taken how many months now? Whether you want to celebrate Barack Obama’s victory, are a Hillary Clinton supporter needing a few more days to wallow in denial (like me) or just need a drink because it’s finally over, there are many great options this week. We have the facts and we’re voting:

SAM Remix, Friday, June 6 at Olympic Sculpture Park
The folks at the Seattle Art Museum have enlisted KEXP’s Kid Hops and Sun Tzu Sounds for a dance party in Olympic Sculpture Park that also includes a sing-along screening of Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge, arguably the best on-screen musical in the past ten to fifteen years.

The party starts early (6pm) and lasts until midnight. I think this sounds like the perfect escape from a long work week.

Crystal Castles, Saturday June 7 at Chop Suey
If you hadn’t danced enough in Olympic Sculpture Park the previous night, this might be the show for you. Crystal Castles are 8-bit, electro-pop/punk band (maybe I can throw in a few more adjectives) and their self-titled debut album is one of my favorite albums this year. They have a sound that is heavy on synths and there isn’t a sound they don’t try to distort.

When I saw the band play at the Showbox last year, they opened for Metric and their 30 minute set was brilliant. With a room lit almost exclusively by their pulsing strobe light, the Metric fans in the crowd (myself included) really didn’t know what to make of this band. They were punk and messy where Metric was restrained and tight. It was an odd pairing that worked well for the evening but I’ve wanted to see Crystal Castles play to their own audience ever since. Finally, I (and the rest of Seattle) will have that chance.

The Ting Tings, Tuesday June 10 at Chop Suey
I try as much as I can to limit the shows I recommend here to local bands but I can’t help it that with Crystal Castles and The Ting Tings, two of my favorite buzz bands are coming through Seattle in the same week.

The Ting Tings have been in very heavy rotation on my iPod ever since I first heard their singles “That’s Not My Name” and “Great DJ”. Both songs have great grooves that are hard to ignore and singer Katie White delivers some of the catchiest lines with unforgettable choruses. They played at the Vera Project in early February to a small crowd of not any bigger than 50 people. Since then, “That’s Not My Name” has become a number one hit in the UK last month (displacing a Madonna single!) and the following week their debut album We Started Nothing took over the same spot on the album charts and another single, “Shut Up and Let Me Go” was featured in an iPod commercial.